700 workers to lose jobs at Ford due to slow sales

Detroit – A reported 700 workers are set to be laid off at Ford Motor Co.’s Michigan assembly plant. According to an Associated Press (AP) report, the company said Thursday that the planned layoffs are the result of slow sales on small car and hybrid model vehicles.

The Michigan Assembly Plant, which is based in the Wayne suburb of Detroit, will begin only operating two shifts instead of three beginning June 22. The plant is the same one President Barack Obama visited earlier this year to commend the auto industry’s growth since the recession. The plant was; however, shut down at the time in an effort to prevent overproduction on cars that were not selling well.

The change will be the first time the company has cut a shift at one of its U.S. plants. Over the last four years, Ford has added 14,000 workers to its plants in the country.

The layoffs are expected to take place between June and September. According to Ford, 675 assembly line workers and 25 salaried workers will be impacted.